Death toll rises in Armenia-Azerbaijan border clashes

Azerbaijan said Thursday that 71 of its troops had died in border clashes with Armenia over the last two days, increasing an earlier toll of 50 killed in the worst fighting since 2020.

Yerevan said a ceasefire was holding on Thursday on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, with no fresh violence reported overnight.

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On Thursday, Azerbaijan's defence ministry published a list of 71 servicemen killed in clashes this week between the historic rivals.

Yerevan has said 105 of its troops were killed.

A woman mourns at the grave of Azerbaijani Armed Forces serviceman during his funeral in Baku. Reuters

The clashes that erupted on Tuesday ended "thanks to the international involvement" overnight on Thursday, Armenia's security council said, after earlier failed attempts from Russia to broker a truce.

Baku and Yerevan have traded accusations of initiating the violence along their shared border, which also saw hundreds of Armenian civilians flee their homes near the frontier.

The escalation comes as Yerevan's closest ally Moscow is distracted by its nearly seven-month war in Ukraine.

A delegation of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) — a Moscow-led grouping of several ex-Soviet republics — is due in Yerevan later on Thursday, Armenia's foreign ministry said.

Armenia is a member of CSTO but Azerbaijan is not.

On Tuesday, Armenia's security council asked for military help from Moscow, which is obliged under the treaty to defend Armenia in the event of foreign invasion.

Agence France-Presse